In the UFC 325 co-main event, Benoît Saint Denis TKO'd Dan Hookers with nasty ground and pound late in the second round.
The win was Saint Denis' fourth in a row. For Hooker, it was his second consecutive loss. Check out the fight highlights below.
Lightweights Mauricio Ruffy and Rafael Fiziev collided on Saturday's UFC 325 main card in Sydney, Australia and the bout didn't disappoint.
Fiziev took the fight to Ruffy, pressuring the Brazilian and saw success in the opening round. Late in the second frame, Ruffy connected with a right hand that badly hurt Fiziev. He was able to find the finish moments later. Check out the fight highlights below.
Featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovksi logged a dominating performance in his UFC 325 title fight rematch with Diego Lopes on Saturday. With the win, "The Great" tied former two-time featherweight titleholder Jose Aldo for the most title fight wins in UFC featherweight division history.
When arguing who's the greatest featherweight of all time, it always comes down to Volkanovski or Aldo. Max Holloway gets mentions but Volkanovski holds three wins over the Hawaiian. Former two-division champion and UFC commentator Daniel Cormier believes Volkanovski has surpassed Aldo in featherweight greatness. Strengthening that assertion is Volkanovski holding a one-sided decision win over "Junior."
"I'm telling you, he (Volkanovski) is the greatest featherweight of all time," Cormier said on his YouTube channel. "I know we love José Aldo. I know we love Max Holloway, but he just won his eighth UFC featherweight title fight. Four of those victories are against Holloway and Aldo, the two other guys considered the greatest featherweights of all time."
"He's the best in the world, man. He's as good as they come. The guy is tremendous, and I really don't see him slowing down anytime soon. He's too committed," continued Cormier.
Volkanovski first won the 145-pound championship at UFC 245 in December 2019 by defeating Holloway via unanimous decision. He held the championship until UFC 298 in February 2024. He's only lost to one featherweight, Ilia Topuria, in his decade-long UFC career.
Diego Lopes will have more than his title opportunity loss to navigate after news of a serious injury befell the Brazilian following UFC 325.
Despite putting in an admirable performance, Lopes was unable to dethrone Alexander Volkanovski from featherweight gold on Saturday night. As he often does, Volkanovski showed his ability to disrupt his opponent inside the cage, outworking the challenger and walking away with a unanimous decision victory, as he did in their first fight almost a year ago.
The 31-year-old expected things to go much differently for him in the rematch with Volkanovski, though his performance wasn't enough to unseat 'The Great' as the division's chieftain. Coming up short for the second time for an undisputed UFC title is soul-destroying for any athlete, but a recent update on his health has added insult to injury for Lopes.
A trip to the hospital was required after Diego Lopes had allegedly broken both of his feet during his five-round clash with Alexander Volkanovski.
"Looks like we broke both feet," Lopes said on Instagram in the aftermath of UFC 325.
Diego Lopes will now go back to the drawing board and hope to force his way back into title contention in a stacked 145 lbs division.
Given the magnitude of the loss, considering that not many fighters get the chance to compete for a UFC title for a third time, Lopes was in good spirits. His post on Instagram spoke of the highs and the lows of mixed martial arts.
Lopes ended his post with a touching tribute to his friends, with whom he has brought on his journey throughout his time competing in combat sports.
"Some nights you're at the afterparty, some nights you're at the ER. But every morning, I give thanks for the opportunity to live this life with my best friends."
Looks like Diego Lopes broke both feet in his rematch with Alex Volkanovski 🦶 pic.twitter.com/6uDyQtbwRr
— FULL SEND MMA (@full_send_mma) February 1, 2026
Following Saturday's UFC 325 event in Sydney, Australia, the fight promotion announced the recipients of the performance-based bonuses.
The UFC 325 fight card was headlined by a featherweight championship rematch between two-time titleholder Alexander Volkanovski and No. 2 ranked Diego Lopes. The fight went the distance and Volkanovski picked up a second win over Lopes. Like in their first meeting at UFC 314, the matchup earned Fight of the Night honors banking the champion and the challenger an extra $100,000.
Rising lightweight Maurico Ruffy earned a $100,000 Performance of the Night bonus for his second-round TKO win over Rafael Fiziev. Ruffy hurt Fiziev with a right hand and didn't let him off the hook. He finished "Ataman" with a series of punches on the ground.
The second Performance of the Night bonus went to lightweight Quillan Salkilld for his first-round submission win over Jamie Mullarkey to kick off the UFC 325 main card.
Five other fighters banked newly created $25,000 finishing bonuses: Benoit Saint Denis, Billy Elekana, Cameron Rowston, Jonathan Micallef, and Keiichiro Nakamura.
Following tonight's UFC 325: Volkanovski vs. Lopes 2 fights at Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia, tune in to the post-fight press conference to hear the winners field questions from the media.
A featherweight championship rematch headlined the UFC 325 fight card. Two-time titleholder Alexander Volkanovski put his title on the line against Diego Lopes.
A featherweight championship rematch headlined Saturday’s UFC 325 fight card in Sydney, Australia. Two-time titleholder Alexander Volkanovski puts his title on the line against Diego Lopes.
Volkanovski and Lopes first fought last April in the UFC 314 main event. “The Great” won via unanimous decision to become a two-time featherweight titleholder. The rematch will be Volkanovski’s first title defense of his second championship reign. Lopes picked up a TKO win over Jean Silva in September to earn a second fight against the champion.
Volkanovski pawed wth his jab and used feints early. Both men were careful though the first 90 seconds. Lopes landed a leg kick. Volkanovski looked for a takedown. Lopes defended the attempt. Volkanovski delivers a kick to the body. They exchanged right hands. Lopes pressed forward switching stances. Volkanovski closed the distance and worked for a takedown. Lopes defended the attempt and they separated. Volkanovskli landed a clean right hand. MMAWeekly scored the round 10-9 for Volkanovski.
Lopes pressure Volkanovski to start the second frame. Volkanovksi stopped in the pocket with a combination and landed a leg kick on the way out. They exchanged leg kicks. Lopes connected with a right hand. Lopes landed a stiff jab. Volkanovski let his hands to connecting with a combination. He delivered a hard right hand. Volkanovski's right hand found a home. Lopes closed the distance. Volkanovsi applied a guillotine choke but let it go. He scrambled back to his feet in the closing seconds. MMAWeekly scored the round 10-9 for Volkanovski.
Lopes connected with an outside leg kick to start the third. He stepped forward and partially landed a right hand. Volkanovski responded with a leg kick. They exchanged and Volkanovski landed a right hand. lopes connected with an elbow on the break. Volkanovski landdd a big right and that bucked Lopes' knees. The champion landed another right hand. The output slowed for both fights. A short right hand knocked Volkanovski down. He immediately bounced back to his feet. MMAWeekly scored the round 10-9 for Lopes with the knockdown.
Lopes opted to start the fourth with a leg kick. Volkanovski worked behind his jab. He stepped in the pocket with a right hand. Lopes landed back-to-back leg kicks. Volkanovski landed a leg kick. He accidentally kicked Lopes in the groin and the challenger was given time to recover.
Once the action was restarted, Lopes pressed forward. Volkanovski continued to land his jab. Lopes pressed forward with a left hand. Volkanovski fired back. MMAWeekly scored the round 10-9 for Volkanovski.
The fight was too close for anyone to feel comfortable heading into the final frame. Lopes seemed behind on the scorecard and pressed forward. He landed a kick to the body that may have hurt his foot. Volkanovski circled on the outside. Volkanovski changed levels and took Lopes down. Lopes worked his way back to his feet and Volkanovski went back to landing his jab. Volkanovski secured a takedown but Lopes quickly got back to his feet. Volkanovski kept the pressure on. Lopes took Volkanovski down. Lopes took his back and Volkanovski stood. Lopes remained on his back. Volkanovski spun and they worked for position along the cage. Lopes isolated an arm. Heh applied an arm bar. Volkanovski escaped the submission attempt. Volkanovski landed right hands in the closing seconds. MMAWeekly scored the round 10-9 for Volkanovski.
The judges scored the fight for Volkanovski via unanimous decision. The scorecards read 49-46, 49-46, and 50-45.
A lightweight bout between scrappy Rafael Fiziev and Mauricio Ruffy was featured on Saturday's UFC 325 main card in Sydney, Australia.
Fiziev snapped a three-fight losing streak in his last outing, but two of those losses were to the top contender. He entered Saturday's matchup at Qudos Bank Arena ranked No. 9 in the diviosn looking to build momentum.
Ruffy suffered his first career loss in his last fight. losing to Benoit Saint Denis via submission. Prior to the loss, Ruffy was riding a seven-fight winning streak. Ranked No. 14 in the weight class, Ruffy had the opportunity to significantly jump in the rankings.
Riziev inched forward. Ruffy moved just out of the way of leg kicks. They exchange leg kicks. Fiziev closed the distance with a left hand. Ruffy responded with a jab. They clinched and worked along the cage before separating. Ruffy stepped the pocket with a right. Buffy's lead leg began showing the damage from the leg kicks. Ruffy lands a left hook. Ruffy settled down late in the round and began landing his jab. MMAWeekly scored the round 10-9 for Fiziev.
Fiziev continued to utilize leg kicks in the second frame. He delivered a kick to the body. Ruffy was looking to counter. They exchanged jabs and Ruffy connected with a right hand. Fiziev was dictating the pace. Ruffy snuck in a straight right hand. Fiziev continued to land kicks. A right hand stuffed Fiziev. Ruffy followed him. Fiziev is badly hurt. Ruffy delivered right hands. Fiziev got to his feet but on wobbly legs. Ruffy continued to land until the referee stopped it.
The official time of the TKO was 4:30 of the second round.
A featherweight championship rematch headlines tonight's UFC 325 fight card. Two-time titleholder Alexander Volkanovski puts his title on the line against Diego Lopes at Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia.
Volkanovski and Lopes first fought last April in the UFC 314 main event. “The Great” won via unanimous decision to become a two-time featherweight titleholder. The rematch will be Volkanovski’s first title defense of his second championship reign. Lopes picked up a TKO win over Jean Silva in September to earn a second fight against the champion.
MAIN CARD (Paramount+, 9 p.m. ET)
PRELIMINARY CARD (Paramount+, 7 p.m. ET)
EARLYL PRELIM CARD (Paramount+, 5 p.m. ET)
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